However, Wiggins, who is the favourite to win the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award on Sunday, appears to have gone back on his word after revealing he has no intention of surrendering his yellow jersey.

"I don't know what the situation is in terms of leadership, as it stands I'm probably going to try and win a second Tour de France," Wiggins told Radio 5Live. "I don't know, maybe we'll have two leaders, which is more than likely I guess. How that's going to work with the team I don't know, that's more [Team Sky boss] Dave Brailsford's problem to worry about.

"It's just how we service both mouths. Like I said that's more a problem for Dave to figure out, but my goal is to win the Tour next year. Whether that is realised or not I don't know really, we're still in this planning phase at the moment, deciding each race, what we're going to do next year, how we are going to go about training to do that.

"Whether I do the Tour of Italy before it, as I've said that is still undecided. All will be revealed in the coming months I guess."

If Team Sky do decide to name Froome team leader, Wiggins insists he will repay the loyalty his team-mate showed this year.

"I wouldn't be on the start line if not," Wiggins said. "Whatever the team strategy is we all support that, otherwise you don't take the start line because there'll be somebody else that is willing to fulfil that job. It's a case of you do what's asked of you on the day, whatever that decision is."